


The Chorus or the Trees

by phoebenpiper



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 02:02:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29992191
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoebenpiper/pseuds/phoebenpiper
Summary: Seb congratulates Nini on getting the role of Gabriella--or is it Gab-tree-ella?
Relationships: Seb Matthew-Smith & Nini Salazar-Roberts
Kudos: 2





	The Chorus or the Trees

Nini sighed as she stood at her opened locker, impatiently staring down at her phone. Kourtney still wasn’t answering her texts, and she really needed some moral support before classes started.

Today was the first official day of _High School Musical_ : initial costume fittings at lunch, followed by the read-through after school. Nini should’ve been thrilled—she was finally being given the chance to be the star she’d always secretly hoped she could be—but Ricky was ruining everything. How was she to enjoy herself, knowing Ricky was going to be onstage with her, pretending to care, when she’d already moved on?

And EJ wasn’t making things any easier. If possible, he was even more upset with Ricky than she was. Of course, having his girlfriend’s non-theatre ex steal the leading role from him must have been shocking, but he’d spent all weekend talking about nothing else, which hadn’t exactly helped Nini deal.

No, this whole thing was a mess, and Nini really needed a pep talk from Kourtney to—

“Congratulations!”

Nini looked up from her phone to find the beaming face of Seb. “Huh?”

“On the musical!” he clarified. “Congratulations on getting Gabriella!” He tilted his head towards her, adding, “Or should I say ‘Gab-tree-ella’?”

Nini couldn’t help but laugh at the reference. Last year in Brigadoon, senior Pete had insisted on inserting “tree” into the names of all the arboreal chorus members. While their fellow castmates “Chris-tree-na” and “Betha-tree” had simply ignored it, “Tree-tree” and “Sebas-tree-an” had embraced the ridiculousness, although it did eventually lead to Seb shortening his name. Pete had graduated last spring, but Nini and Seb continued to use the nicknames as a reminder of their bonding experience.

And Seb’s radiant smile now reminded her that, despite all the Ricky drama, it was actually a good thing that she’d gotten the part. She’d been so focused on Ricky being Troy that she’d lost sight of the fact that she was going to be Gabriella. And it was sweet that her fellow chorus buddy was so happy for her.

“Thanks,” she said with a smile. “I’m excited.”

But Seb’s smile dimmed slightly at her reaction, and he cocked his head, as if he were examining her more closely. “Are you?”

Leave it to Seb to see something more behind her words. But she truly was excited...sort of; excited for the role, just not for the drama that surrounded it. So she tried to drum up more enthusiasm as she nodded, replying, “Yeah, I am.”

“Well, you’re going to be amazing!” Seb bounced excitedly up and down on his toes as he added, “It’ll be so great getting to hang out with you every day.”

His statement made Nini suddenly realize she was in a uniquely awkward theatre position: she had been so wrapped up in her own casting drama, she hadn’t bothered to look at the rest of the cast list...and thus had no idea if Seb had actually gotten into the show. As last year’s rehearsal pianist (and pianist for the auditions just a few days ago), she assumed he’d be doing that again, so his hanging out comment didn’t necessarily mean he’d gotten cast. Congratulating him for getting in when he hadn’t would be the ultimate theatre faux pas, but not congratulating him if he had would reveal her own self-absorption. So she simply smiled and replied vaguely, “Yeah. I’m looking forward to it, too.”

Clearly Seb didn’t sense her uncertainty because he continued to beam. “And just because we’re playing arch-rivals, it doesn’t mean we’re not still friends IRL,” he said earnestly, adding, “Besides, I’m eager to show a new side of Sharpay—she’s not really the villain that everyone thinks she is.”

“Wait! You got Sharpay?!” She remembered Carlos saying something to Miss Jenn about Seb auditioning for the role, but she was frankly surprised he’d gotten it. It was hard to imagine the quiet farm boy standing in front of her now in a flannel shirt and chunky boots playing the spoiled diva. But the look of sheer bliss on his face was infectious, and she threw her arms around him in a warm hug, saying, “Seb, I’m so happy for you.”

While still embracing, they both spontaneously started hopping up and down ecstatically, as theatre kids do.

“Isn’t it amazing?!” Seb pulled away from the hug but continued to hop. “I still can’t quite believe it myself. It’s a dream come true.”

Seeing his joy bubbling over, Nini remembered how much fun they’d had together in the chorus last year. Nini wanted to return his tree reference, to show him that their bond would continue, even though they were no longer playing greenery. But how? She considered it for a moment before teasing, “So does that make you...Shrub-pay?”

Seb gasped and immediately framed his face with enthusiastic jazz hands, announcing, “Shrub-pay—I love it!”

The boy was pure spun sunlight, but Nini suddenly noticed there was something different about him. “Hey, you’re not wearing your glasses!” she burst out loud. IRL she had only ever seen the boy in his glasses, although he never performed with them—before every entrance, he’d deposit his glasses on the stage manager’s desk before stumbling blindly onstage—but she noticed he wasn’t squinting now.

“My family got me contacts,” Seb explained, his grin somehow growing even wider. “They insisted that their Sharpay shouldn’t be blind onstage.”

“Your family’s absolutely right. And you look great—you’ve got nice eyes.”

Seb’s face turned a deep pink, clearly self-conscious about the compliment, although his smile didn’t dim. “I just hope I can do Ashley Tisdale proud.”

“I’m sure you will.”

“Hey!”

Both Nini and Seb jumped at the sudden appearance of EJ, who stepped between them in order give Nini a hello kiss. “Ready for today?” he asked her, as if Seb didn’t even exist.

The blond boy seemed to get the hint and, like any good chorus member, quietly started to fade into the background so as not to pull focus from the stars. Their Brigadoon director had constantly yelled at the chorus about not upstaging the leads, drilling it into them that the audience “can’t” (or really shouldn’t) “see the chorus or the trees” because they were simply there to “add, not distract” from the main story. Mr. Ephron had been a treasure-trove of stupid catchphrases, but they did have a way of sticking with you, and Nini could practically see them reflected on Seb’s face now, despite his resigned smile.

But this wasn’t the stage, and Seb had just as much a right to be “sharing her spotlight” as EJ. So instead of answering her boyfriend, she quickly reached out and grabbed Seb’s wrist. “I’ll see you at the read-through...Shrub-pay,” she added with a wink.

Seb’s grin instantly returned to its previously brilliance as he said, “We’re going to be fabulous, Gab-tree-ella!” He gave an excited bounce before turning and walking away.

Returning her attention back to EJ, Nini saw his skeptical look.

“Gab-tree-ella?” he asked, making a face.

Having played Tommy in Brigadoon last year, EJ didn’t understand their tree reference, but that was okay. The roots of Seb and Nini’s friendship ran deep—nothing bonds theatre folk faster than being in the chorus of a bad show together—and Nini wasn’t really sure she wanted to share their private joke with EJ. So she merely shrugged, saying lightly, “Nothing. It’s a chorus joke.”

EJ smiled at her. “But you’re not in the chorus anymore! You’re my star!”

As he gave her another kiss, Nini realized that his words seemed to be more a brag about his girlfriend than genuine happiness for her own sake, which was a total 180 from the convo she’d just shared with Seb. The blond boy had not only reflected her own joy about her starring role but had magnified it, reminding her just how much getting the part actually meant to her.

She was finally going to be a star! But deep down, she knew in her heart she would always be a tree.

And feeling thus grounded, she felt ready to face the day.

**Author's Note:**

> This started out as a fic to explain why Seb is no longer wearing his glasses in episode 2 but it ended up being more about Nini & Seb's friendship.
> 
> I was literally a tree in a production of Brigadoon. There ARE no trees in Brigadoon (because it's set in the Highlands of Scotland), so I have to wonder if someone from my production now works for Disney. FYI, I am still friends with Betha-tree, Chris-treen-na, and Ju-tree-ana because, like I said, nothing bonds theatre folk faster than being in the chorus of a bad show together!


End file.
